Tech

Olympic Park Gives Your Face the Mount Rushmore Treatment

Attendees of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, next month may see 3D imprints of their faces on the facade of the entrance to Olympic Park.

Starting Feb. 7, the entrance — which includes an exhibition hall, broadcasting suites and a viewing deck — will be transformed into a massive art installation, created by British architect Asif Khan and Swiss company iart.

Photo booths within the MegaFon-branded pavilion, which is one of the largest Russian telecommunications companies and Olympics partner, will scan 3D images of visitors' faces. Those images will then be used to transform the building's skin. The facade is designed with more than 10,000 actuators and functions like a huge pin screen or a giant bed of nails.

The display can feature up to three faces at the same time, 8 meters high and 6 meters wide, for about 20 seconds. Those who stop into MegaFon stores across the country will also have access to the face-scanning photo booth.

"Every actuator features a video-compatible LED sphere at its tip, which in turn is attached to a white textile membrane covering the entire facade," a statement reads on the iart website. "The resulting effect turns the pavilion into a Mount Rushmore of the digital age: Faces, as if set in stone, become alive, take shape and disappear, only to morph into a new face."

The concept aims to gives visitors the "opportunity to be the face of the Olympics." About 170,000 faces are expected to be displayed throughout the duration of the events.

Participants will be able to watch a website to see if and when their face is displayed and receive a video clip that can be shared via social media.

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